Endangered Species: Quickly Dying Parts of Our Planet

Worldwide, there are thousands of beautiful species that are becoming closer and closer to extinction. Not just animals, but plants too. We, humans, must claim responsibility for this.

The biggest causes of extinction are pollution and lack of habitat. Development causes natural habitats to be cleared and the animals that have been displaced must find another place to live. This leads to competition among species for the limited habitat areas, and since a certain area can only sustain so many lives, much of the wildlife is destroyed. Pollution contributes a lot to the extinction of aquatic organisms: when we dump into rivers and other bodies of water, the waste not only harms the creatures in that area but flows out to the ocean and harms organisms all over our planet.

Even just in North America there are approximately 2000 endangered species. Canis lupus rufus, better known as the red wolf, is one of the most endangered but also one of the most popular! Why is it that such a beloved animal is allowed to venture so close to extinction?

Other well known, endangered species in North America include: Steller Sea Lion, California Big Horned Sheep, West Indian Manatee, Florida Panther, California Condor, the American Crocodile, and many many other species that bring a rich diversity of life to this continent.

A more complete list of endangered North American species can be found here.